About
Launched as a partnership between Strategic Community Partners and the Marygrove Conservancy with financial support from the Kresge Foundation, the Community Impact Incubator provides capacity building support and facilities to a cohort of nonprofits organizations during a 12-month incubator experience. This opportunity creates an environment for the participating organizations to develop their missions and further scale their service to children and families in Detroit’s Fitzgerald neighborhood.
Community Impact Incubator Quarterly Impact Report
Curriculum
Over a 12-month period, the Community Impact Incubator will provide monthly intensive sessions with content experts, technical assistance, access to a network of professional consulting services, and opportunities for professional development.
Monthly programming will focus on delivering support in seven key focus areas::
- Strategy & Planning
- Talent & Operations
- Leadership & Governance
- Management & Evaluation
- Funding & Resources
- Organizational Culture
- Program Development
Each of the organizations’ leaders will participate in a training program tailored specifically to their missions and the needs of the community they serve. These leaders identified several strategic areas in which they need support and, in response, the Conservancy and SCP created a curriculum that will provide them with the specific resources and training needed to further scale their services. This tailored approach intends to strengthen nonprofit leaders of color while also providing key services to communities that may not normally have equitable access to them.
Program Benefits
One year of subsidized rent
Monthly meetings with a community of practice cohort
Technical assistance and support
One-on-one mentor matching
Professional development workshops and training
2020 Participants
Detroit City Lions Youth Club
Detroit City Lions Youth Club helps at-risk youth develop healthy bodies and minds. Children aged 3 to 15 can participate in sports programs such as football, soccer, basketball, swim, dance, lacrosse, and more. Detroit City Lions also provides tutoring and mentoring services, STEM programming, leadership development, financial literacy, youth employment, and wraparound services for families.
Devon Buskin
Founder and President
Detroit Phoenix Center
Detroit Phoenix Center is a low-barrier resource center for young people between the ages of 13 and 24 who are experiencing housing insecurity. Homeless and high-risk youth can drop in to take a shower, access laundry services, receive meals or other basic need items. The center also offers career readiness, life skills, and educational workshops, as well as a computer lab for schoolwork or job searching.
Courtney Smith
Founder and CEO
Detroit Youth Choir and Performing Arts Company
Detroit Youth Choir and Performing Arts Company offers the youth of Detroit a performing arts experience to develop creative skills and talents through music education, dance, and theater.
Anthony White
Artistic Director
JOURNi
JOURNi is dedicated to building an inclusive technology ecosystem in Detroit, equipping individuals with the education and skills to jumpstart their careers and thrive in the local economy. JOURNi provides immersive courses and youth-centered programming in technology and entrepreneurship.
Richard Grundy
Co-Founder
Pure Heart Foundation
Pure Heart Foundation aims to empower and embrace children of incarcerated parents to help break the cycle of generational incarceration. Children enrolled in the Pure Heart program receive access to mental health care and counseling, mentorship, academic support, and recreational activities.
Sherelle Hogan
Founder
Executive-in-Residence
The Community Impact Incubator also features an Executive-in-Residence position that invites a community-focused professional to provide mentorship and consultancy to participating organizations over their 12-month journey.
This year’s position will be held by Dr. Rita Fields, who brings nearly two decades of consulting experience in the business, human resource, nonprofit, healthcare, and educational sectors. Dr. Fields has served as a professor and currently is a dual CEO of 313 Industries, a contract machining and manufacturing corporation, and Copper Phoenix Consulting, LLC where she offers expertise on talent and operations management. She is also a Marygrove College alumna and earned bachelor’s degrees in English and psychology, as well as a master’s degree in human resource management.
Executive-in-Residence
Founding Partners
Marygrove Conservancy
Established in 2018, the Marygrove Conservancy is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to preserve the legacy of Marygrove College through equitable stewardship of a campus that exemplifies excellence in education, serving Northwest Detroit and the city overall.
Strategic Community Partners
Strategic Community Partners (SCP) is a national firm that works with organizations by advising, designing and managing projects and initiatives that advance equity with and for communities. Through partnership with mission-driven organizations, SCP builds capacity by pairing strategy with community and cultural context to drive forward powerful and equitable missions. SCP also operates a community center and the first co-working space in Detroit’s legacy-rich Fitzgerald neighborhood, providing accessible workspace for local nonprofits and community organizations.
Funding Partner
The Kresge Foundation
The Kresge Foundation is a private, national foundation that works to expand opportunities in America’s cities through grantmaking and social investing in arts and culture, education, environment, health, human services, and community development, nationally and in Detroit, Memphis, and New Orleans.
Stay Connected
Interested in learning more about the Community Impact Incubator? Sign up for our newsletter to receive news from the program and get updates from the organizations as they continue on their 12-month journey.
Community Impact Incubator Quarterly Impact Report
Interested in reviewing the community quarterly impact report? Click the link below.